Labor Day: Times change, the role of workers does not
Published September 1, 2014
Editorial by Burlington Times-News, Burlington, NC, August 29, 2014.
Labor Day 2014.
The day we say so long to summer — even if temperatures top 90 degrees.
When we get together with friends to flip burgers on the grill.
Take the boat out on the lake, perhaps?
Go shopping — again.
Or, with gas prices lower than we’ve seen in a while, drive up to the mountains for that first taste of this year’s apple cider.
It’s a day for catching up around the house, having fun or doing whatever. Unless you’re one of the dedicated folks whose labor takes no break on Labor Day or any other — law enforcement, firefighters, EMTs, doctors, nurses and many more in an array of jobs that keep us safe and make our lives better.
You’ll understand — please and thanks — if we also include our loyal carriers who deliver your Times-News 365 days a year and our colleagues who do what it takes to publish the newspaper every day.
Labor Day, after all, is about the work of individuals, a recognition and celebration of workers’ contributions to the American economy.
But Labor Day hasn’t always been about all workers. The holiday’s roots date back more than a century to a small but growing segment of American workers in the labor union movement.
In 1894, after federal troops killed people involved in the Pullman strike, President Grover Cleveland looked for a way to smooth things over with the unions. He went to Congress with the idea of a federal holiday to honor workers. Congress made it official and Labor Day was born.
Alamance County has its own history with union organizing. Our area was not without labor strife decades ago in area textile mills, situations which improved through the determination of workers and ultimately owners. Famous union organizer Crystal Lee Sutton, on whom the film “Norma Rae” was based, made her home here in Burlington until her death in 2009. Her work in her native Roanoke Rapids was legendary.
Our city and county have come a long way. It has been a generation since textiles ruled the local economy and Alamance County workers could count on plenty of jobs without much education. Here and elsewhere, education and skills lead to better jobs and a better life for workers and their families.
Today, medical and other fields dominate the Alamance County labor landscape.
Much has been said and written of late about the value and cost of a college education, but job availability of recent graduates reveals a great deal. Simply graduating from college doesn’t guarantee a job these days. It’s your major that matters.
Engineers and computer science majors led the field of securing jobs before graduation, according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers. At the back of the pack? Liberal arts majors.
Likewise, students can find help at Alamance Community College matching degrees and certificates to the job market. The result is a greater likelihood of finding work once you graduate.
We offer here our admiration and respect for workers who come to work prepared and who give their best to their jobs every day.
Physical labor. Intellectual labor. Whatever the job, working folks make life better for themselves, their families and our communities.
We salute you.
